Well my brother said that my mom will give him the money he need for a new computer. I am trying to convice him to get a desktop not a laptop. He will be gaming most of the time. Other stuff will be using IM, Internet Explorer, General Stuff, Maybe Folding not sure, etc....
I guess it really depends on how many programs you have running at any given time.
I have easily 10+ programs running at all times
I am just waiting for the new stepping of Q9XXX series to come out because my C2D is just not cutting it
To each his own though, I convert videos/audios quite frequently so I need more muscle
Well this is what I got for him depends on his budget:
Under $100 = Pentium Dual Core E2180 $70
Under $150 = Core 2 Duo E7200 $132
$200 & Lower = Q6600 $200
I dont think ill suggest him any cpu more expensive since the Q6600 will last him for at least 2.5 years before he starts thinking of getting a new rig
If he isnt upgrading again in the next 2-3 years, the q6600 is going to be the best thing to purchase. Applications are all becoming more and more multithreaded. You can always add speed, but you cant add cores.